Come with us. . .
&nbsp&nbsp visit that most exotic of places: the past.

Visit the dusty roads, the mining camps, the railroad towns, the raw new cities, the
homesteads, the businesses, the churches, the firefighting camps, and the cattle drives of Montana
in 1910.

It was a pivotal period in world history. Times were changing.
Things were getting better and things were getting worse. People worked to make new places for
themselves or to keep places they knew.

It was a time much different from today. It was a time
very similar to today.

Profound political questions were
open for discussion, filling some people with excitement and others with
dread. Should America be socialist or capitalist? Should
the government take responsibility for the social welfare of citizens?
Should women vote and be full participants in civic processes? Should the government be
involved in environmental regulation and conservation of natural
resources?

And it wasn't just government that was changing. Telephones, cars, airplanes and electricity were
rapidly shifting from novelties into the foundation
of a new way of life. The industrial age was changing communications,
entertainment, and travel.

Help us understand that place and time better by doing research into your family or neighborhood. You can contribute essays, photo essays or primary
documents about any topic: the coming of
telephones, the relationships between
men and women, life at school, the magazines that were being read, the activities
people pursued for recreation, the sermons that were being preached, a description of a trip
to the dentist, or an analysis of the condition of roads in your county.

What
businesses were thriving on main street? How
did a livery stable function? What was the
interior layout of the buildings like? What activities generated
income? What music were people listening to
and where? What were the rules of baseball? What leagues existed?